‘MAHA’ Update: FDA Dumps 8 Food Dyes; CDC Rethinks Kids’ Covid Vax
The additives that will be phased out — but not outright banned — are Blue 1 and 2, Green 3, Red 40, Yellow 5 and 6, Orange B, and Citrus Red 2. In other "Make America Healthy Again" news: The CDC might pull the covid vaccine off its list of recommended vaccines for kids, and the NIH says it won't have answers about the cause of autism until next year.
Stat:
Food Companies Agree To Phase Out Synthetic Dyes, In Win For MAHA
Food manufacturers will phase out eight synthetic dyes from all U.S. products by the end of 2026, the federal government announced today in a move that reflects the growing reach of the Make America Healthy Again movement. (Todd and Lawrence, 4/22)
The New York Times:
RFK Jr. Declares ‘Sugar Is Poison’ In Campaign Against Food Industry:
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. escalated his war against the food industry on Tuesday, declaring that “sugar is poison.” Mr. Kennedy’s comment came during a highly publicized news conference where he also asserted that he has “an understanding” with major food manufacturers to remove petroleum-based food colorings from their products by 2026. (Stolberg and Severson, 4/22)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump’s FDA Sends A Bullish Signal To Biotech
For months, investors have feared that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his Make America Healthy Again movement would derail biomedical innovation. His ousting of Peter Marks—a senior official at the Food and Drug Administration and key proponent of faster drug approvals—sent biotech stocks tumbling last month and stoked concerns that the agency was being politicized and turned against science. A more nuanced narrative is now taking shape. (Wainer, 4/22)
On the covid-19 vaccine for children —
Politico:
RFK Jr. Eyes Reversing CDC's Covid-19 Vaccine Recommendation For Children
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is weighing pulling the Covid-19 vaccine from the government’s list of recommended immunizations for children, two people familiar with the discussions told POLITICO. The directive under consideration would remove the Covid shot from the childhood vaccine schedule maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and widely used by physicians to guide vaccine distribution, marking Kennedy’s most significant move yet to shake up the nation’s vaccination practices. (Cancryn, 4/22)
On autism —
CBS News:
NIH Director Pushes Back Timeline For RFK Jr.'s Autism Answers
The head of the National Institutes of Health now says it could take until next year to get preliminary results from their new studies into autism, marking the latest delay to findings that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had promised by September. "We're going to get hopefully grants out the door by the end of the summer," NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya told reporters Tuesday. "And people will get to work. We'll have a major conference, with updates, within the next year." (Tin, 4/22)
On women in the military —
The New York Times:
Female Soldiers Will Have To Pass ‘Sex-Neutral’ Physical Test, U.S. Army Says
Women in U.S. Army combat roles will be expected to pass the same “sex-neutral” physical test as male soldiers, that military branch announced on Monday, weeks after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the elimination of lower physical fitness standards for women in combat. The change could hinder the Army’s ability to recruit and retain women in particularly dangerous military jobs. The new test, the Army Fitness Test, will replace the Army Combat Fitness Test, and “is designed to enhance Soldier fitness, improve warfighting readiness, and increase the lethality of the force,” the Army wrote in its announcement. The new scoring standards will be phased in beginning on June 1, the Army said. (Wolfe, 4/22)
